World Tea Expo, May 6-8, 2015 in Long Beach, California, is your chance to capitalize on this growing category to the fullest.
In 2013, Sri Lanka was projecting it would have a record breaking year, crossing the $1.5 billion export mark for the first time. Now in 2014, Ceylon tea reached new heights.
Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
In 2014, the country broke records for tea exports from Sri Lanka. The island nation exported 327.8 million kilograms of tea, valued at $1.64 billion. This represents an increase of 3% in volume and 4% in value since 2013 according to customs data analyzed by Siyaka Research. The highest exports previously were 322.5 million kilograms in 2011.
57% of Sri Lankan tea exports go the Middle East and North Africa. Other major importers include Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States or CIS (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan), as well as Turkey. Imports also increased in Iraq, UAE and Libya. The most significant drops occured in Iran, Syria and Kuwait.
Bulk tea exports became a smaller percentage of total exports last year, however, dropping to just 39% of all tea sent out of the country. In 2013, bulk tea comprised 41% of exports. Tea in packets and tea bags were on the rise.
SOURCE: HIRU Business News and Sunday Observer
